For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”  Mark 8:38 NKJV

 

We live in an adulterous and sinful generation; a generation which has no fear of God; a generation that calls bad good and good bad; a generation that mocks and persecutes those who serve and fear God and who obey His word. If you want to be popular, you will go with the crowd, but if you want to honor God, you will definitely be swimming upstream against the flow of the ungodly. The devil will not let you just quietly serve God, he will stir up people to get you to back down and deny the blood of Jesus, because that is what you are doing when you are ashamed of the Lord and of the gospel. You have to realize that the darker the world gets, the more even a small light will shine. You cannot hide your light and if you can’t hide it then you might as well let it shine brightly!

 

Sometimes people are ashamed of their family, but they are usually very careful not to act like it in front of them so that they don’t offend them. It hurts to know that a family member is ashamed of you. It is even worse to be ashamed of Jesus, Who poured out His blood for you on the cross. Jesus wasn’t ashamed to hang on a cross and take abuse for you! If you are afraid of what people think of you and you allow their opinions to cause you to be ashamed of Jesus then you trample His blood underfoot. 

 

If you are a Christian, washed in the blood of Jesus, there is nothing to be ashamed of. If you are ashamed of Jesus and His word, He will be ashamed of you when He comes. You don’t want Jesus to be ashamed of you!

 

For both He Who sanctifies [making men holy] and those who are sanctified all have one [Father]. For this reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren; 12 For He says, I will declare Your [the Father’s] name to My brethren; in the midst of the [worshiping] congregation I will sing hymns of praise to You. 13 And again He says, My trust and assured reliance and confident hope shall be fixed in Him. And yet again, Here I am, I and the children whom God has given Me. 14 Since, therefore, [these His] children share in flesh and blood [in the physical nature of human beings], He [Himself] in a similar manner partook of the same [nature], that by [going through] death He might bring to nought and make of no effect him who had the power of death–that is, the devil–15 And also that He might deliver and completely set free all those who through the [haunting] fear of death were held in bondage throughout the whole course of their lives. 16 For, as we all know, He [Christ] did not take hold of angels [the fallen angels, to give them a helping and delivering hand], but He did take hold of [the fallen] descendants of Abraham [to reach out to them a helping and delivering hand]. 17 So it is evident that it was essential that He be made like His brethren in every respect, in order that He might become a merciful (sympathetic) and faithful High Priest in the things related to God, to make atonement and propitiation for the people’s sins.  Hebrews 2:11-17 AMP

 

Jesus is not ashamed to call you His brothers and sisters. Even though you were an unworthy sinner, He was not ashamed to wash you in His blood and forgive you and treat you like family, because that is what you become when you accept Him as your Lord and Savior.

 

Jesus came down from heaven, was born as a human being, lived among us, was anointed by the Holy Spirit, loved and helped people, and in the process, made enemies who tried to kill Him, but could not, until He, Himself, laid down His life. He suffered and endured enormous opposition, persecution, lies, criticism, abuse, beatings, excruciating pain, the weight of the sin of the entire world, and finally an extremely slow and painful death because He loved us and because His mission was to make atonement and propitiation for the people’s sins. He was not ashamed to die for you, don’t be ashamed to live for Him!

 

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control. 8 Do not blush or be ashamed then, to testify to and for our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for His sake, but [with me] take your share of the suffering [to which the preaching] of the Gospel [may expose you, and do it] in the power of God.  2 Timothy 1:7-8 AMP

 

 

“To the angel of the church in Thyatira write:

 

These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze.

 

19 I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

 

20 Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols.

 

21 I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling.

 

22 So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways.

 

23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

 

24 Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets (I will not impose any other burden on you):

 

25 Only hold on to what you have until I come.

 

26 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations-

 

27 He will rule them with an iron scepter;

he will dash them to pieces like pottery’- just as I have received authority from my Father.

 

28 I will also give him the morning star.

 

29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.  Revelation 2:18-29 NIV

 

Thyatira was possibly the least important of the seven cities, located about forty miles southeast of Pergamum, halfway between it and Sardis. It was under the command of Rome from 190 B.C., and prospered under the Roman Emperor Vespasian. It was an industrial center, one of the main industries being that of dyeing and manufacturing woolen goods, and containing a number of corporate (trade) guilds: potters, tanners, weavers, robe-makers, and dyers.

 

Paul’s first European convert, Lydia the purple-seller of Philippi, came from Thyatira. The principal deity of the city was Apollo, worshipped as the Sun-god under the surname Tyrimnas, and a shrine outside the walls was dedicated to Sambatha, a sibyl. It was a center of activity by the Nicolaitans with their idolatry and licentiousness under a false “prophetess.”

 

The Lord Jesus Christ makes an honorable mention to the church of Thyatira of their love, their faith, their service and their patience (perseverance). They practiced the word of God by walking in the love of God. Walking in love requires obedience to the word and the Spirit of God, so they were genuinely committed to Him.

 

Jesus commends them for their growing fruitfulness and says that their last works were better than their first. Some people start off hot and end up cold, but these Christians were doing more than ever before. All Christians should be this way – doing better and doing more for the Lord than they did previously – so that their last works may be their best works.

 

After the praise comes the rebuke. Jesus rebukes them for their tolerance of the woman “Jezebel.” The problem was that they tolerated – they allowed, and did not prevent – this evil spirit represented by the name “Jezebel.” The term Jezebel is used symbolically, referring to the notorious historic Jezebel. She was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of Sidon, formerly a priest of Astarte, and who had made his way to the throne by murdering his predecessor Pheles.

 

Ahab’s marriage with her was the first instance of a marriage with a pagan princess of a king of the northern kingdom of Israel and this alliance was a turning-point in the moral history of the kingdom. Jezebel stands out in Israel’s history as the person who lead them the furtherest away from the God Who loved and protected them.

 

Until Jezebel, the ten tribes had yielded to idolatry in the worship of the calves, however, the true God was still worshipped and the Law of Moses was acknowledged. Jezebel changed all of that. She was a powerful woman and her husband, Ahab, was weak, allowing her to dominate him, his throne and his kingdom. She was ruthless in her ungodliness – she was completely sold out to the devil in her worship of Baal and Astarte or Ashtaroth (the Phoenician Venus).

 

She had no conscience – her ambition was to kill all the priests of Jehovah and institute her priests and her beliefs as the official beliefs of Israel. She had no fear of God and she did not tolerate Israel’s relationship with the Most High God either. A “Jezebel spirit” is a spirit that calls good evil and evil good. It does not allow good in others, but forces evil on them.

 

“Jezebel” of Thyatira calls herself a prophetess claiming that her teaching was an authentic message from God, but it was not – she is lying. This spirit is beguiling – seducing, misleading, deceiving, and leading the Thyatiran Christians astray – leading them away from the true path. She is immoral and impure – seducing Israel to depart from the truth, to commit fornication and to eat things sacrificed to idols – sins of the historical Jezebel. She refuses to repent or to abandon her evil ways and so the Lord will cast her on a bed of suffering, He will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways, and He will strike her children dead (those who yield to her and follow her) – not just a death of the body, but an eternal death.

 

The Lord wants us to be aware of evil people and evil doctrine. He wants us to HATE evil, not to tolerate it or allow it to co-exist with the truth. You cannot control or stop all the evil that is in the world, but you CAN and you MUST keep it out of YOUR LIFE, YOUR FAMILY and YOUR CHURCH. Hold onto the truth until you see Jesus face-to-face.

 

And Samuel said to Saul, You have done foolishly! You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God which He commanded you; for the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever; 14 But now your kingdom shall not continue; the Lord has sought out [David] a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince and ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.  1 Samuel 13:13-14 AMP

 

When the Israelites begged God for their own king, just like the other nations had, God gave them a king – Saul. God warned them that it was not in their best interests to have a king. He wanted to be able to choose and raise up leaders for them Himself, who would be godly leaders and who would lead them into the will and the blessing of God.

 

God knows what is in men’s hearts and He knows who the best man for the job is. If a leader does not honor God, the people would not honor God – as we can see when we read through First and Second Samuel, Kings and Chronicles. This would bring the nation down. Also, after that king died, the throne would be passed to his son, someone who felt entitled to it, and not too someone who had earned the honor and who appreciated it.

 

God’s choice is always the humble spirit and not the proud or arrogant. Having a system of kings would not keep the people in the will of God.

Because Israel insisted, God gave them the king that they thought they wanted. Saul was physically impressive – he stood head and shoulders above all the other men – but, unfortunately, his heart was not wholly committed to the Lord. This was a problem for him, his family and all of Israel. Because Saul was foolish, disobedient and proud, God told him that his sons would not sit on the throne after him, but another man, whose heart was perfect toward Him, would become the king. Amazingly, enough, this did not seem to faze him too much. He did not make an effort to change his ways at all – he just became worse.  

 

God had told Saul to wipe every trace of the Amalekites from the face of the earth. He told him, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, I have considered and will punish what Amalek did to Israel, how he set himself against him in the way when [Israel] came out of Egypt. Now go and smite Amalek and utterly destroy all they have; do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.” (1 Samuel 15:2-3 AMP) This was a fulfillment of a Word that God spoke to Moses in Exodus 17:14 AMP, “And the Lord said to Moses, Write this for a memorial in the book and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens.”

 

Unfortunately, Saul and the people did not obey God – they had a “better” plan – they did not kill the king or any of the Amalekite’s healthy animals. Apparently, they had spared them so that they could “sacrifice” them to the Lord. But God did not tell them to spare them for a sacrifice – He told them to kill them all!

 

Then Samuel said to Saul, Stop! I will tell you what the Lord said to me tonight. Saul said to him, Say on.

 

17 Samuel said, When you were small in your own sight, were you not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed you king over Israel?

 

18 And the Lord sent you on a mission and said, Go, utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites; and fight against them until they are consumed.

 

19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but swooped down upon the plunder and did evil in the Lord’s sight?

 

20 Saul said to Samuel, Yes, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord and have gone the way which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag king of Amalek and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

 

21 But the people took from the spoil sheep and oxen, the chief of the things to be utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.

 

22 Samuel said, Has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

 

23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim (household good luck images). Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.   1 Samuel 15:13-23 AMP

 

When God confronted him, through Samuel, about his disobedience, he first lied, claiming that he had done what was asked of him and then he blamed the people for it. Because of this, Saul was stripped of his kingship and the kingly anointing that was on his life. Only after it was too late did Saul even begin to cry out in repentance, but even then he did not humble himself before God, instead he asked Samuel to go with him to worship the Lord in front of the people so that he did not lose face with them. He was always too worried about what people thought than what God thought and it was his downfall. Saul’s disobedience changed his own destiny. Because of it, God could never again anoint him or use him.

 

It is always better to obey God than to offer many sacrifices afterwards.

 

But God–so rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us,

5 Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him, for] it is by grace (His favor and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation).

6 And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed one).

7 He did this that He might clearly demonstrate through the ages to come the immeasurable (limitless, surpassing) riches of His free grace (His unmerited favor) in [His] kindness and goodness of heart toward us in Christ Jesus.

8 For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God;

9 Not because of works [not the fulfillment of the Law’s demands], lest any man should boast. [It is not the result of what anyone can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself.]

10 For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].  Ephesians 2:4-10 AMP

 

God has a wonderful plan for every person who has ever lived and who will ever live. Before anyone of us was born, God had a plan to bring us into relationship and fellowship with Himself. He prepared paths ahead of time for us to walk in. He prearranged the good life and made it ready for us to live. All that stood in our way was a wall of partition, created by sin.

But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were [so] far away, through (by, in) the blood of Christ have been brought near. 14 For He is [Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony). He has made us both [Jew and Gentile] one [body], and has broken down (destroyed, abolished) the hostile dividing wall between us, 15 By abolishing in His [own crucified] flesh the enmity [caused by] the Law with its decrees and ordinances [which He annulled]; that He from the two might create in Himself one new man [one new quality of humanity out of the two], so making peace.  Ephesians 2:13-15 AMP 

 

Jesus, by His crucifixion, death and resurrection, broke down and destroyed the wall of partition between God and man. All that was left was for each person to recognize what Jesus did for them and to believe in Him and to receive Him as their mediator and peace-maker.

 

Before you meet Jesus, you live a life that has no purpose and no rewards. Whether you believe in fate or in making your own destiny and no matter how hard you work at it, you never find your higher purpose. However, the moment you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you begin to live a new life – you begin to walk on the path that God has ordained for you and you begin to live the good life that He has prepared for you.

 

When you become a child of God, He begins to reveal to you His plan and purpose for your life. As you press in to His Word, He begins to show you the good life that you can live in Him. As you press in to hear His voice, your desires change to line up with God’s desires for you. You begin to walk on the path that He had planned out for you before you were born. You begin to life this wonderful life in Him that He had prepared for you even before He sent Jesus to die for you.

I call heaven and earth to witness this day against you that I have set before you life and death, the blessings and the curses; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live.  Deuteronomy 30:19 AMP

 

You may have been born into this earth with nothing going for you, destined for trouble and tragedy, but in Jesus, you are born again into blessing, destined for a life of love, peace, joy, fulfillment, satisfaction and the glory of God. It is your choice – so choose the good life!

Many evils confront the [consistently] righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.  Psalms 34:19 AMP

 

We live in an imperfect world. As a result of man’s sin and the devil’s influence, this earth is full of sickness, disease and death. Sickness, disease and death don’t discriminate – calamity is something that threatens everyone at different times in their lives. You will have many opportunities to be defeated by the things that go wrong in your life, and without God, you have no remedy. However, Jesus defeated the devil at Calvary, took away the keys of death, hell and the grave and then anointed the believers to walk in His authority, in His Name, on the earth! When you walk with God and call on Him out of a pure heart, He will deliver you from every situation that threatens you.

For a righteous man falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.  Proverbs 24:16 AMP

 

Everybody experiences challenges and opportunities to give up and be defeated. Sometimes life knocks you right down, but if God is on your side, it cannot knock you out! The wicked are overthrown and thoroughly defeated by calamities, but the righteous place their trust in God and they get back up on their feet again. The devil keeps swinging at the righteous – sometimes he misses, sometimes he lands a punch – but they just keep on getting back up and hitting him back!

 

Psalms 118:6 AMP says, “The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”  and Romans 8:31 AMP says, “What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] .” If you know that God is on your side, then you need have no fear. No man, no beast, no demon, no foe can successfully challenge you. God is bigger, mightier, and smarter than all of them! They have already lost before they began!

The steps of a [good] man are directed and established by the Lord when He delights in his way [and He busies Himself with his every step]. 24 Though he falls, he shall not be utterly cast down, for the Lord grasps his hand in support and upholds him. 25 I have been young and now am old, yet have I not seen the [uncompromisingly] righteous forsaken or their seed begging bread. 26 All day long they are merciful and deal graciously; they lend, and their offspring are blessed. 27 Depart from evil and do good; and you will dwell forever [securely]. 28 For the Lord delights in justice and forsakes not His saints; they are preserved forever, but the offspring of the wicked [in time] shall be cut off. 29[Then] the [consistently] righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever.  Psalms 37:23-29 AMP

 

The Lord is always close to the good man, who delights in God and God delights in him. Even when he stumbles, the Lord grabs his hand and helps him back to his feet. The wicked will not be around forever, but the righteous endure and are blessed now and forever.

The eyes of the Lord are toward the [uncompromisingly] righteous and His ears are open to their cry. 16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. 17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their distress and troubles. 18 The Lord is close to those who are of a broken heart and saves such as are crushed with sorrow for sin and are humbly and thoroughly penitent.  Psalms 34:15-18 AMP

 

Just like a loving mother carefully watches over her precious baby, the Lord is always watching over His humble, righteous ones and He hears them in the moment that they cry out to Him. When they cry for help, He hears and delivers them out of all their distress and troubles!

It is better to trust and take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in man. 9 It is better to trust and take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.  Psalms 118:8-9 AMP

 

Don’t put your trust in the arm of man. God is the only One Who will never let you down in your hour of need. King David faced many “giants” in his life besides Goliath and God delivered him every time because David trusted in Him.

 

This should be your faith confession and your confident declaration:

But as for me, I will look to the Lord and confident in Him I will keep watch; I will wait with hope and expectancy for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. 8 Rejoice not against me, O my enemy! When I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light to me.  Micah 7:7-9 AMP

John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.

 

9 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

10 “What should we do then?” the crowd asked.

11 John answered, “The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same.”

12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”

13 “Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them.

14 Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely-be content with your pay.”  Luke 3:7-14 NIV

 

When a change occurs in your heart, a change occurs in your mouth and in your actions. John preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He commanded the people that they should, “produce fruit in keeping with repentance!” and he told them that, “the ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

 

John was straightforward and brutally honest with people – he called things as they were and he got people’s attention. They were either convicted of their sin and they repented, or they became really mad at John and continued in their sin. Once people repented and were baptized, they were hungry for righteousness.  They asked John questions about how they should conduct their lives from then on.

John encouraged all of them to be unselfish and to share whatever extra clothes and food that they had with those who had nothing. The tax collectors would usually take more from the people than what was owed and keep it for themselves. For this reason, they were hated and reviled by the populace. John told them to be honest concerning the taxes they collected and not to steal from the people. He told the soldiers not to use their authority to steal from, threaten, intimidate, or falsely accuse people. 

If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.

10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.

11 For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom,

13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!

14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?

15 Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.

16 If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.  James 2:8-17 NIV

 

 

James writes, in his book, that, “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” You may have faith, but until you put action to your words, your faith is not proven. You don’t have faith because you say you have faith – you have faith because you acted on your faith. Faith, by its very nature requires action!

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”

Galatians 2:20-21 NIV

 

Righteousness with God is not attained through your own works, actions or efforts – it is purchased with the priceless and precious blood of Jesus. However, once you have heard the gospel – once you have realized that Jesus died for you – you must take action. If you believe then you must speak – you must believe in your heart that God raised Jesus Christ from the dead and you must open your mouth and confess that Jesus is your Lord and Savior. Otherwise you will not be saved.   

 

James encourages us to, “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” As the body of Christ, we are not judged as the world is judged, but we will be judged by the Word – whether what we believe is translated out into our life and our actions. Whatever is in your heart will be heard coming out of your mouth and will be seen manifested in your actions. Your fruit will reveal your root and all that is truly in your heart.

The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. 9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; 10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. 13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; 14 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. 17 But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children– 18 with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.  Psalms 103:8-18 NIV

 

God is so good to His children. He is so compassionate, merciful, gracious, faithful and just. He is slow to anger and quick to forgive. He is abounding in love – He has more than enough love to give – His love is as high as the heavens are above the earth. He heals your infirmities and forgives your iniquities. Because of His love and mercy, He does not treat you the way you deserve to be treated.

 

When your life is one big mess – He doesn’t even care how messy your messes are – He is willing to jump right in the middle of them and clean you and them up. When the world has finished with you, lost patience with you and cast you aside, God has only just begun to work with you and help you. 

 

Psalms 103:14 says that, “He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.” God remembers that you are dust, and He has mercy on you, but sometimes you forget. You think that YOU are all you need and then you think to call on the Lord only when you have failed to make it on your own or when you have boxed yourself into a corner.

 

You all have natural parents who care for you until you become independent of them and you no longer need them, but as you grow spiritually, God teaches you to rely less on yourself and more and more on Him. He wants you to trust Him completely and lean on Him entirely. He wants you to lay down your own visions, dreams, and desires and yield your will to His. He knows something you don’t know – that your greatest blessing comes when you lose yourself in Him.

 

Your natural mind has a hard time understanding this. You take a huge leap of faith when you first begin to rely on Him and His wisdom instead of your own. Luke 17:33 says, “Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.” And John 12:25-26 says, “The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”

 

You must lose your life in order to find it. Lose yourself in the Spirit of God and you will find out who you really are. Realize that you are nothing and He is everything and you begin to open yourself up for His blessing.

 

There is a realm in God that you will never experience until you have yielded your heart, soul, will and strength to the Father. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all you need to make it in this life. You can trust the arm of the flesh and struggle for years, or you can place your whole life in the hands of the Father and be an over-comer in every arena of your life!

 

 

 

 

22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.

 

23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.

 

24 Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

 

25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

 

26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.

 

27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.

 

28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

 

29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.

 

30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

 

31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household.”

 

32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house.

 

33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized.

 

34 The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God-he and his whole family. Acts 16:22-34 NIV

 

Verse 31, in the Amplified Bible, says, “And they answered, Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ [give yourself up to Him, take yourself out of your own keeping and entrust yourself into His keeping] and you will be saved, [and this applies both to] you and your household as well.”

When you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, in essence, you are giving yourself up to Him and into His care. You are no longer in your own care – you are in His care.

 

You take yourself out of your keeping and entrust yourself into His keeping. From the moment you trust Him with your life, He begins to watch over you in earnest. You are now His and He takes that very seriously. He watches over those who are is – to bless them, to keep them, to protect them and to provide for them.

 

22 Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Luke 12:22 NIV

 

31 So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?’ or `What shall we drink?’ or `What shall we wear?’

 

32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

 

33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Matthew 6:31-33 NIV

 

When you give yourself into the Father’s keeping it means that you cease to worry yourself about your own keeping and you now completely trust Him to take care of you. Before you were a believer, you spent all your energy worrying about and working to take care of your basic needs, but as a believer, God says to you, “I will watch over you and provide for you!” We tend to think that we are responsible for the basic things and God is responsible for the bigger things.

 

We want to decide when to invite God to participate in our lives, but that is our pride manifesting! He wants us to know that we can depend on Him from the smallest things to the biggest things and that we must depend on Him from the smallest things to the biggest things!

 

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price.  1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV

 

We are not our own. We belong to the Father, the Son – Jesus – and the Holy Spirit. We must honor God by trusting Him with our lives. By allowing Him to lead us, guide us, protect us and provide for us. We must trust His Word that says we are His and that we must “cast our cares on Him because He cares for us” (1 Peter 5:7).

 

Hebrews 12:2 says that Jesus is the “Author and the Finisher of our faith” and in Philippians 1:6, Paul says that he is confident of this, “that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” I can trust Him with every aspect of my life, from the smallest to the greatest, because, “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.” (Song of Solomon 6:3) and “He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.” (Song of Solomon 2:4)

 

Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.  Luke 5:17 NKJV

 

As we study the Gospels, we find a record of the healing and miracle ministry of Jesus. Over seventy percent of His life and ministry was healing the sick and casting out devils. Modern day religion and tradition says that the day of miracles is over, however, God’s Word says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8 NKJV). He has not changed. What He did then – He still does now!

 

Salvation – Greek word “soteria” – is translated in the KJV as deliver, health, salvation, save, saving. It means rescue or safety (physically or morally). Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words says that, “soteria” denotes deliverance, preservation, and salvation for our spirit, soul and body. “Salvation” is used in the New Testament of deliverance from everything that threatens us, whether in spirit, soul or body.

 

If we serve God, He promises to deliver us personally and also as a nation. He will deliver us from the bondage of sin and also keep us safe from all physical dangers that threaten our life, our health and our well being, including sickness and disease. He will deliver Israel at His second coming and He will save His Church from the wrath that will be poured out on the ungodly at the culmination of the ages. The Lord’s salvation includes all the blessings bestowed by God on men in Christ through the Holy Spirit.

 

When Jesus died at Calvary, He paid the price – not only for our sins, but for our sickness, too. For those who think that we are only saved from sin and nothing else – think about this: it is ridiculous to think that Jesus would save you from your sins and eternal damnation, only to make you live in hell all the way till you get to Heaven!

 

It is evident in the ministry of Jesus that He wanted to heal people and perform miracles, because He is compassionate and He is good.  That is what the Gospel is all about – Good News! Good news to the lost – you don’t have to be lost any more. Good news to the sick – you don’t have to be sick any more.

 

The healings and miracles that are recorded in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are not the only miracles that Jesus did, because the book of John 21:25 NKJV says that, “there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.”

 

This means that during Jesus’ three and a half years of earthly ministry, He performed miracles every day – healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out devils, forgiving and restoring people – spirit, soul and body.

 

9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, `Show us the father’?

 

10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.

 

11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.

 

12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.  John 14:9-12 NIV

 

Jesus did nothing on His own. His Father did the works through Him. In the same way, Jesus works through us to perform miracles to bless and help people. When He ascended, He gave the His power and ability to His disciples and to ALL who believe His Word. He said to us in Mark 16:15-18 NKJV, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

 

16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

 

17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;

 

18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”  

 

By God’s Word and with His power, we can lay hands on the sick and see them healed. He is the Healer – we just lay our hands on the sick. Always expect something to happen when you lay hands on the sick. You and I are an extension of the healing and miracle ministry of Jesus. The healing and miracle ministry of Jesus is still alive today – in us.